Then there were three …

WEATHER: Both Row Aloha, Moana Uli and Fight the Kraken have this week endured strong winds and high seas thanks to the coat tails of Darby. As Darby tracks west towards Hawaii tonight, the 19-25 knot winds will drop tomorrow into the low twenties, then high teens.

STORM WATCH: Darby remains a strong tropical storm although thankfully the center of the storm is expected to pass no closer than 250nm from the nearest crew. On Saturday, Darby is forecast to pass close to the Big Island. Sunday into Monday, the islands of Molokai, Maui and Oahu will likely endure the effects of Darby, but the severity of the wind will depend on the exact track and intensity of the storm.

It has been a busy and exciting day for the Great Pacific Race. Today we celebrated the third team to complete the Great Pacific Race. This was Moana Uli Rowing with crew members Tim Spiteri, Greg Vlasek and Brian Conville.

Originally they were a team of four. However, due to an injury, crew member Tina Neill was picked up from Isabel after only two weeks on board. Their crew of four became a crew of three who powered through and crossed the Pacific after 48 days 2 hours and 40 minutes.

The crew was greeted by family who flew in from as far away as Australia, friends, and crew members from Uniting Nations Row and Team Ocean Hearts. This evenings celebration at the Waikiki Yacht Club almost felt like a reunion with so many crew members in attendance.

We will have more from Moana Uli Race in tomorrow’s report as we will catch up with them during their final scrutinizing.

We are now down to three crews still out on the Pacific rowing toward the finish. Our support yacht Galen Diana met up with Vicki and Megan on Fight the Kraken. Skipper Rod Mayer told us that both girls were up on deck rowing together when the support yacht came along side of Sedna. “We are really excited about getting to Hawaii” Vicki told the support crew.

We are very excited to have the rest of our crews arrive as well.

The first three arrivals have been very exciting. Three down and three to go!